


Naomi's Necklace

by Sunrises_and_Soccer



Category: NCIS: New Orleans
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-06
Updated: 2020-04-13
Packaged: 2021-03-01 18:01:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 7,453
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23511265
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sunrises_and_Soccer/pseuds/Sunrises_and_Soccer
Summary: When a necklace Tammy gave Naomi was stolen, it's up to Hannah, Tammy, and Naomi to figure out who took it.
Relationships: Tammy Gregorio/Hannah Khoury
Comments: 8
Kudos: 30





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I had to write something for a class...and this happened. I know some of the things that will be mentioned in this story haven't happened on the show (yet), but I needed to come up with a plot that would work. I'm new to AO3, I'm still trying to understand everything, so bear with me. Enjoy!

“I’m home!” Naomi hollered as she entered the house. She threw her soccer backpack on the floor and took her jacket off before heading to the kitchen.

“Hey, you’re back!” Her mom exclaimed, drying her hands on a towel. “How was practice?”

“It was good,” she replied, grabbing a water bottle from the fridge and sitting on a barstool. “We’re getting ready for preseason. Where’s Tammy?”

“She’s still at work finishing paperwork, she’ll be home by dinner. Speaking of which, what do you want to eat?”

Naomi shrugged. “How about pasta? I have a scrimmage tomorrow.”

“I could do that. Want to help me?” Hannah turned on the water, while Naomi looked in the pantry for pasta. “How’s the drama with Cassandra? Has she said anything?”

“Nope, she doesn’t want to talk to me,” Naomi huffed. “I didn’t even do anything to her! She’s saying that I purposely skipped our hang out. I had practice, I can’t just skip practice!” She put the pasta on the counter and sat on one of the barstools, fiddling with her necklace.

“She’s just jealous, she can’t run track because she broke her ankle, and she saw you getting to do what you love and she’s upset.” Hannah sat down next to her. “This will all blow over. And if it doesn’t, then it’s her loss. You know this, don’t hang out with anyone that causes you problems.”

“Thanks, Mom,” Naomi hugged her mom before going off to finish her homework. She sat down on the couch and put her earbuds in, taking a deep breath before working on her essay for English.

The door opened and Tammy walked in. “I’m home!” she called out. “Hannah, Naomi, you here?”

Naomi looked up from her spot on the couch, face lighting up as she saw the other agent enter the room. “Tammy!” she yelled, getting up to hug her.

Tammy laughed as the girl crashed into her, wrapping her arms around the woman’s neck. “Hey, Naomi! How are you?”

“I’m good, Mom’s in the kitchen making dinner, come on!” Naomi tugged on Tammy’s arm, pulling her into the kitchen. “Mom! Tammy’s home!”

“I heard,” her mom replied, walking over to the duo and giving Tammy a kiss. “Perfect timing. Dinner’s ready.”

\----------

“So how’s school?” Tammy asked as they finished eating. “Anything exciting?”

“Not really,” Naomi mumbled. “Cassandra still isn’t talking to me, but I have no time to worry about that because of tomorrow’s scrimmage and the essay for English that’s due on Tuesday.” She went back to fiddling with her necklace.

Hannah and Tammy shared a glance across the table as if they were having a silent conversation. Hannah then looked at her daughter. “You’ve got this. Your team is cohesive enough and strong enough to win tomorrow, and it doesn’t even count anyway.”

Naomi glanced up. “You two are coming right?”

Tammy put a hand on the girl’s shoulder. “We’ll do everything we can.”

“And remember,” Hannah started, looking at her daughter.

“ _Sticks and stones may break my bones but words can never hurt me_.” They said together. Naomi looks at Tammy, raising her eyebrows.

Tammy shook her head furiously. “I don’t believe in that nursery rhyme stuff. It’s useless!” she exclaimed, her Brooklyn accent in full force. The mother-daughter duo shook their heads.


	2. Chapter 2

It’s almost time to head out on the field. The entire team was in the locker room. Some were chatting quietly, ignoring the loud music from someone’s speaker, others were dancing, others were finishing getting ready, putting shin guards or cleats on, and fixing their hair. Naomi sat at her locker, checking last-minute texts. She smiled when she saw one from her mom that said, ‘Tammy and I are on the way. Go kick some butt, we’ll be watching.’

“Alright girls, let’s go!” Their coach yelled, getting everyone’s attention, even the Track girls in the very back of the room, who were minding their business and getting ready for their own practice. 

Naomi got up, making sure that she put everything in her backpack, and started to head to the door. Before turning the corner, she looked back at where the Track girls were and glanced at Cassandra. At that moment, Cassandra looked up from where she was talking to another 8th-grade soccer player, Nichelle, and rolled her eyes as they met Naomi’s. Nichelle quickly got up and followed her teammates, passing Naomi. “What is it with that girl?” she mumbled to herself. She shook the interaction off, getting her head back into game mode.

The team headed downstairs, exiting the school and walking onto the field, where the sound of friends and family could be heard from across the way. The other team was warming up on their side. Warm-ups and the team huddle were a blur.

Naomi looks up at the stands, scanning the crowd. No sign of her mom or Tammy yet. _They must be stuck in traffic._ She took a deep breath, centering herself. “I got this.” The anticipation was rising once they lined up. The cheering, players doing last-second stretching, goalkeepers and coaches yelling last-minute encouragements-the whistle blows. 

Both teams start off aggressively, each getting off a few shots right out of the gate. Naomi’s team seemed like they were starting to fall behind by the thirteenth minute. The ball went out for a corner kick. Naomi lined up in the 18-yard box, ready to take her shot if the ball came to her. She looked over at the bleachers for two seconds, finally finding the two people she was looking for. Seeing them gave her more energy, and she made her way to the top of the box, seeing no defenders around her. Nichelle sent the ball in. Naomi was able to get her head on it, flicking it in the direction of another one of her teammates, who took a shot that sailed into the back of the net. Cheers erupt. Every player on Naomi’s team currently on the field joined in one group hug, congratulating the goalscorer. Naomi even got a few pats on the back for the assist.

The family and friends section was loud, screaming a number of encouragements. Two voices stuck out from the crowd, one with a strong New York accent, and her mom’s, who has the tone of a leader. She looked towards the source of the voices, smiling when she saw the couple on their feet, clapping. She threw them a quick thumbs-up before lining back up for the kickoff.

The game went back and forth, the level of aggressiveness never subsiding. At one point near the end of the match, a girl took Naomi out in the box, conceding a penalty kick. Naomi got up and brushed the grass off of herself, looking over at her coach on the sideline, who made a motion to say that she should take the kick. She lined up the ball the way she wanted it on the spot, stepped backward and to her left when she got an idea to trick the goalkeeper.

The entire field is quiet, quiet enough that you could hear the birds singing in the trees at the park next to the school. The keeper bounced on her toes, waiting for the referee to blow the whistle. Naomi smirked. Her body language makes it seem like she’s going to take the kick with her right foot, going towards the right side of the net.

 _TWEET!_ Went the whistle. Naomi quickly shifted her feet, striking the ball with her left foot, catching the keeper off guard. The ball sailed into the top left corner, out of reach. With two minutes left, the score was 2-0. They ran out the clock by connecting passes, keeping possession in their favor. When the final whistle blew, the bench erupted, every player running to the center circle, jumping up and down and screaming. It might have been a scrimmage, but it always boosted the confidence of the team if they beat their rival. They huddled together, not caring how sweaty anyone was, just elated about the win. 

“Alright girls!” Coach shouted, getting everyone’s attention once again. “It was a hard-fought match, you’ve all deserved the weekend off. Keep up the good work and I’ll see you all Monday after school. You are dismissed.”

Naomi ran over to meet her mom and Tammy at the bottom of the bleachers. “Great job out there today!” her mom exclaimed, giving her a fist bump.

“Thanks,” she replied with a huge smile. “I’ve got to head back upstairs now but I’ll see you two after?”

“We’ll be waiting near the gate for you,” Tammy said.

Naomi mumbled a “thanks” before jogging back across the field to the locker room. She headed up the stairs, taking a second to think before entering the locker room. She sat on the bench right in front of her locker and untied her cleats, slipping the shoes and her shin guards off. She washed her hands at a sink before re-tying her hair. She went into her backpack, opening the pouch where she kept her keys, phone, necklace, and earrings. She carefully put her earrings back on with one hand, the other rummaging through the pouch. “What the-” She tried to act normal when she couldn’t find what she’s looking for.

She started taking everything out carefully, thinking, _Maybe it fell into my backpack?_ She pulled out her cleats, extra hair ties, water bottles, anything she saw, but she can’t find the necklace. She took a deep breath, trying not to panic. Checking each pocket, any place it could have gone, but it’s nowhere to be found. Getting up, she wandered around, asking her teammates if they’ve seen it. _How could no one have seen my necklace?_

Naomi realized she was one of the last girls in the locker room, so she packed up, took a deep breath, and headed back downstairs towards the gates. She saw her mom and Tammy standing right outside, and Naomi could tell they were in the middle of a conversation based on the fact that Tammy was using hand gestures.

“Hey!” she said excitedly, shaking Naomi out of her thoughts. “You okay?” she asked, less enthusiastically, sensing something was up.

Naomi shook her head. “No,” she muttered, afraid to look at her. She was so afraid of what Tammy was going to say when she found out the necklace the New Yorker gave her was missing.

“What’s wrong?” her mom asked. Naomi shook her head and started walking down the street toward the car. She missed the look the two women gave each other.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This turned out to be a little longer than I had expected. But enjoy!

The car ride was silent. Naomi was able to keep herself from letting the tears fall. She kept her head against the window, earbuds in the block out any conversations that the two agents might’ve tried to start.

“Naomi, what’s wrong?” her mom asked again as the girl can downstairs, hair still wet from her shower.

Naomi sat on a barstool and put her head in her hands. “Someone stole it.”

That caught her mom’s attention. “Stole what?”

“The necklace that Tammy gave me.” The admission finally opened the floodgates. Hannah sat down next to her daughter, trying to comfort her. She didn’t pry, she just let her get all the tears out. 

Once Naomi grew quiet, her mom finally murmured, “Can you tell me why you think someone stole it?”

“It was in my pouch when I left for the scrimmage,” Naomi sniffled. “I was looking for it afterward, but it was nowhere to be found. I checked my entire soccer bag, my locker, everywhere. I couldn’t find it.” She closed her eyes for a second. “I asked around. No one else saw it. Someone had to have known exactly where it was and took it.” She punctuated the last sentence by hitting her hands against the counter.

“Naomi, look at me. We’ll figure out who took it. But I’m sensing you’re not telling me something. What is it?”

“I’m afraid of what Tammy will say,” was the whispered response. “She got it in New York on that one assignment, it even has my initials on the front. Someone must have taken it to get my attention.”

Her mom pulled her into a hug. “I don’t think she’ll be too upset by it. Sure she might be a little sad, she took the time to find something as a gift, but I know she just wants you to be happy. Okay?”

“Okay,” Naomi grumbled. “And where is Tammy?”

“She went upstairs before you came down here. How about we start to think of who could have possibly taken it? That way we can narrow it down?” Naomi nodded.

“Great. Let’s get to it.”

\----------

“Alright,” Hannah sighed, adjusting her position on the couch. “So we’ve come up with a shortlist as to who could be the one who took your necklace. We’ve got Cassandra, our prime suspect, with the possible motive being revenge for something... maybe for you missing a hangout, which isn’t much. Who else we got?”

“There’s Nichelle, I saw her talking to Cassie right before we left the locker room. Cassie looked suspicious when she met my eye-they were definitely up to something. Nichelle barely talks to anyone.”

“Is there anyone else that would want to take it?”

Naomi racked her brain trying to come up with anyone else. ”I don’t think-wait! Anita! Not sure why she would take it, but she does like to pick on me.”

“Wait for a second,” her mom chimed in. “Is this the same Anita that took your Algebra binder in December and only gave it back to you at the end of the day?”

“Yes, she is.”

“Okay, she’d be a repeat offender, add her to the chart,” Naomi added Anita to the chart. “Hmm, we haven’t figured out a motive but we know she could be it.”

“I’m glad you came up with the idea to do this,” Naomi replied with a soft smile. “This way we can visualize the possible suspects.”

“It’s no problem, and you know you’re going to have to tell Tammy tomorrow, she’s not going to yell at you, even though she seems like she would.” This made both of them laugh. “I’ll have to go to work tomorrow afternoon for a little while, that’ll be a good time.”

\----------

“Tammy?” Naomi hesitated, playing with her fingers.

“Yeah?”

“I have to tell you something.”

Tammy sat on the left side of the couch, making a gesture for the girl to sit next to her. “What’s up kid?”

Naomi took a deep breath before beginning. “The necklace you gave me last year was stolen.”

Tammy’s demeanor changed, no longer happy, but serious. “You poor thing. When did you notice it was stolen?”

“After the scrimmage yesterday. I was looking for it, but I checked everywhere and it was nowhere.”

“Let’s try to find who took it then.”

“Wait,” Naomi remarked, a little surprised. “You’re not mad?”

Tammy shook her head. “It’s not your fault, so no I’m not. We just have to find the person who took it. Did you and your mom start a list of suspects?” Naomi nodded, pulling up the list on her computer. “Okay, so it seems like you have everything except the witnesses filled in. You’ll have to ask around on Monday.”

“I will.”

\----------

“I feel bad for Naomi,” Tammy said as she sat on the bed. “With all the danger she’s been put in, getting in the groove with soccer, and everything really she doesn’t get much of a break.”

“I’m a terrible mother,” Hannah sighed. “It seems like even though I try my hardest to give her everything, but there always seems to be some sort of problem.”

“Hannah, baby look at me,” Tammy pulled Hannah to sit next to her, turning her so their eyes met. “You’re not a bad mother. Things happen. We can’t protect her from it all you know.”

Hannah leaned back, laying down now. “What would someone do with that necklace anyway? It has her initials on it.”

“I mean, it is a gold necklace, anyone could take it.”

“Who do you think took it? Which one sounds like they would be the suspect?”

Tammy furrowed her eyebrows. “You want me to use my profiling skills to come up with a possibility? Really? To help find out who took your daughter’s necklace?” Hannah nodded. “I would be profiling thirteen-year-olds.”

“So?”

“It’s weird. It’s not like they’re criminals.”

“But it could bring us closer to figuring out who took it. Do you want to help Naomi or not?”

Tammy sighed. “Fine. What information do we have about these three girls?"

Hannah sat up again. “We know that Anita has picked on Naomi before. Apparently she picks on anyone that hasn’t been in the school system for long. Naomi told me she’s the most popular-”

“Should I be writing this down?” Tammy interrupted.

“Yes.”

“Fine,” Tammy grumbled. She got up and grabbed a notepad that was on the nightstand. “Okay, so Anita’s picked on Naomi before, and apparently she’s picked on others before. Anything else?”

“Other than her being popular, no. Okay, next one: Nichelle. Nichelle is apparently someone who doesn’t talk to many people. According to Naomi, she’s really shy but is also a skilled soccer player.”

“Is she that girl who takes the corners on Naomi’s team?”

“Yeah. Did you write that stuff down?”

Tammy looked up from the notepad. “Yep. Who’s next?”

“Cassandra. She got into some sort of argument with Naomi, I’m not completely sure why. I don’t even think Naomi knows.” Hannah paused for a second. “So we know that Cassandra is smart, all honors like Naomi, which is one of the reasons they’re friends, she does Track and Field, and she’s lived in New Orleans and been in school her entire life. But they’re currently not on speaking terms for something.”

“How do you know all of that?”

Hannah rolled her eyes. “Naomi told me.”

“You remember all of it though?”

“Does Naomi talk about her all the time?”

“Fair point.” Tammy lightly nudged the other woman’s shoulder.

Hannah smiled. “Alright. So what can you conclude?”

“I can conclude that you have a very good memory.”

“ _Other_ than that, babe.”

“It sounds like the only one being a strong possibility is Anita. But then how would she have known where the necklace was?” Tammy looked over at Hannah, who looked deep in thought. She didn’t answer. Tammy moved a strand of hair out of Hannah’s face. “Baby, did you hear what I said?”

“Hmm?”

“I said,” she turned around to completely face Hannah. “How would she have known where the necklace was?”

“Good question.”

Tammy placed a kiss on her cheek. “Alright,” she said, getting up. “We will discuss this tomorrow. Right now we should get some sleep. How about you go check on Naomi while I get ready?”

“Yeah, I can do that.”

“Good. Now shoo.” Tammy waved her out of the room.

Hannah took a deep breath once she left their room. She walked down the hallway to Naomi’s room. She peeked in silently, seeing that the lights were off. She tiptoed to the sleeping figure and placed a light kiss on Naomi’s forehead. Naomi shifted but didn’t wake up, thankfully. Hannah went back into the other room, where Tammy was climbing into bed. “She’s asleep.”

“That’s good,” the New Yorker said. “How are you feeling now?”

Hannah slid into bed next to her, turning off the light. “I’m feeling a little better. Seeing her here, _safe_ , I guess it helped me calm down.”

“Good.” Tammy slowly placed her lips onto Hannah’s. After they broke the kiss, they lay in bed wordlessly for a few seconds. “Come here.”

Hannah moved into Tammy’s open arms. “I love you.”

“I love you too. Night Hannah.”


	4. Chapter 4

“Come on Naomi you’re going to be late!” Hannah yelled up the stairs on Monday morning.

“I’m coming!” Naomi exclaimed. She grabbed her backpack from where it was sitting next to her door and raced down the stairs.

“I’ll grab your lunchbox, you go put your shoes and sweater on.”

“Naomi I have your lunchbox!” Tammy yelled from the front door.

“Thanks, Tammy.”

“No problem baby.”

\----------

At school, Naomi kept a lookout for any of the girls that could have taken her necklace. By the time the final bell rang for the day, she was ready to head to the locker room to do more investigating. She saw Anita talking to Nichelle and Cassandra, which was very suspicious, normally those three don’t want anything to do with each other.

Naomi tapped Nichelle on the shoulder, getting her attention and pulling her aside. “Did you happen to see someone take my necklace? It’s missing.”

Nichelle stepped back. “Your necklace is missing?”

“Yes, it is.”

Nichelle looked around, hoping the other two girls didn’t see her talking with Naomi. “Look, I know who took your necklace,” Naomi gasped quietly. “But I promised her I wouldn’t tell anyone, especially you. I wish I could help you, but I’m sorry.” _At least the girl is sincere,_ Naomi thought.

She whispered a “thanks” and went back to her backpack. “At least I have one witness,” she muttered to herself.

Practice dragged on, Naomi getting more frustrated every time she missed a shot or didn’t connect a pass. Her coach yelled at her twice, telling her she needed to pick up her pace and play better. By the time it was over, she stormed upstairs and angrily plopped herself on the bench. “Naomi Porter, I know who took your necklace,” a voice behind her said. She turned around. Anita. “It was Cassandra. I saw her walk over, go into your backpack, and take it out.”

Naomi narrowed her eyebrows. “Why should I believe you?”

“Because,” Anita said, sauntering around the bench to stand in front of Naomi. “I know something you don’t,” she responded with a smirk before walking away.

Naomi was left on the bench by herself, thinking. She quickly made the decision to confront her friend- _wait, is she still my friend?_ She got up and went over to the section where the Track girls were. “Cassandra,” she demanded. “Where is my necklace? I know you have it!”

Cassandra looked shocked. “I don’t know what you’re talking about! I don’t have it!”

“Yes, you do. Now give it back.”

“What makes you think I have it?!” Cassandra raised her voice. They ignore the looks some of the others were giving them.

“You know how much that necklace means to me,” Naomi growled. “You know that it’s special and can’t be replaced.”

“Why do you think it was me?” Cassandra asked slowly. “Did someone tell you I did?”

“Anita did,” Naomi lowered her voice. “She said you went into my backpack and took it.”

“Oh my gosh, Naomi, why did you listen to her? She can’t be trusted. She’s trying to frame me!”

Naomi scoffed. “Honestly, I’m so hurt right now I have no idea who to trust here.”

“Naomi-”

“No,” she interrupted, turning around and walking back to her locker. “I don’t want to hear it.” She grabbed her gear and left the locker room.

\----------

She walked to the gate at the entrance to the field, sitting down on the ground as she waited for her mom to pick her up. She looked around her, taking in the sounds. There’s the sound of music playing, probably from a local band two streets down. She thought about how she finally has a home. Her mom has a job that won’t take all around the world constantly, so they won’t be leaving New Orleans anytime soon. And Tammy. Her mom met Tammy on her first day at NCIS. Naomi only met Tammy after they had settled in. Tammy and Hannah grew close quickly, leading them to their relationship now. Naomi loved that she didn’t have to worry about telling her friends that she might have to leave at a moment’s notice to travel halfway across the world.

Not like she has many friends though. There are a few girls she talked to in her classes, but she only has one real friend. Cassandra. She was the only one who welcomed the new girl. That’s why they’re so close, no one else wants to be friends with a girl who doesn’t look like everyone else. She stands out. She’s not from the South, she can speak multiple languages, she doesn’t have the same mannerisms as everyone here.

Cassandra doesn’t-didn’t care. She’s accepting of everyone, no matter if they’re not from the area, don’t look like everyone else, or if they act differently. That’s why she’s the only one Naomi trusts to know about her mom and Tammy’s relationship. Naomi doesn’t think she’ll tell anyone, but it hurts. Obviously there had to be something big happening if Cassie isn’t being nice to her. But what about the necklace? Cassandra says she didn’t take it, and Anita says she didn’t either, and Nichelle says she knows who stole it, she wouldn’t be saying that to make it look like she didn’t take it, would she?

Naomi looked up, sensing someone walking towards her. “Why are you sitting here looking so glum?”

She sighed. “Hi, Mom. I’m just thinking. Where’s the car?”

“Parked down the street. I thought you could use a little walk. How are you doing?”

Naomi shrugged, getting up. “Still haven’t figured out who took my necklace.”

“Well, did you talk to the girls?” Her mom questioned as they walked down the street.

“Yeah, and they all have stories that don’t line up. Nichelle said she knows who took it but she can’t tell me for some reason, Anita said she saw Cassandra take it, and Cassandra has no idea what’s going on.” 

“Well that doesn’t help,” her mom responded, stopping at the car. “One of them has to be lying.”

“That’s exactly what I’m thinking.”

“We will come up with a plan tonight, the three of us, okay?” Naomi nodded with a sigh. “Let’s go home.”

\----------

“Why are you still here, New York?” Pride asked as he came back into the main room from the kitchen.

Tammy looked up from where she was staring at a stack of files. “Huh?”

He walked over to her desk. “I said, what are you still doing here?”

Tammy leaned back in her seat. “I thought I would finish these before I left.” She gestured to the files.

“There’s another reason, isn’t there?”

She sighed. “I guess I just needed time to think.”

“Think about what?”

Tammy looked around the room before she answered. “The necklace I gave Naomi from New York was stolen.”

Silence filled the space for a second as Pride picked his next words carefully. “How do you know it was stolen?”

“Naomi told us. She told me and Hannah. She said that it was in her bag before that scrimmage on Friday, she came back and it was gone. Someone had to have known where it was. She keeps it in a pouch in her soccer backpack.”

“Why would someone take her necklace?”

“That’s exactly what I’m thinking. Hannah made me basically profile the possible suspects. One definitely doesn’t seem like she would but the other two, they could, but I’m not sure. I feel like I’m missing something. There has to be an angle I-”

“Gregorio.”

Tammy stopped talking. “Yes?”

“Go home. You need to be there for Naomi. She’ll get her necklace back. She has her mom and you to help her. Your family is waiting for you.”

“Thank you, Pride,” Tammy said, taking a deep breath. She grabbed her jacket and bag and left. _Your family is waiting for you._ She liked the sound of that.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> But one more chapter after this... we're almost there!

“Any luck on finding the necklace?” Tammy asked as they finished dinner. Naomi shook her head. “Did anyone say anything?”

Naomi took a sip of her water to give her an extra second before she answered. “Anita said Cassie took it, Cassie claims she has no idea what’s going on, and Nichelle knows who took it but refuses to tell me.”

Hannah was deep in thought, not entirely listening to the conversation between the two. An idea came to her. “Can you pull up the chart? We’ll clean off the table.” Naomi ran upstairs to her room, looking for her computer. She found it on her desk, next to a picture that was taken a few months ago. She smiles as she picks up the photo. It was on Thanksgiving, and Pride invited the three of them to his house for early dinner. Naomi was one of the youngest there, the only other non-adult being CJ, but it didn’t matter. Everyone’s treated like family, that’s what makes the team so close-knit. The picture is of Naomi, Hannah, and Tammy, who are all sitting on the couch curled up together while Patton tells a story. Naomi laughed as she recalled the memory. She grabbed the photo and her laptop before going back downstairs.

“Alright,” Hannah spoke up as they sat down at the table again, Naomi in the middle between the two agents. Naomi booted up her computer and opened the doc where they had set up a chart. “Now we can add their sides of the story. Write in each of these boxes here,” she pointed to the column on the right, “what they told you.”

Tammy pulled the laptop over to herself. “So it seems as if Anita is saying Cassandra took it, can she prove it? She has to have guts to say that, especially if the other girl had such a surprised reaction. I’m thinking Anita is our prime suspect.”

“So tomorrow I should see if I can get Nichelle to tell me about what she knows? Actually, wait, I think Anita threatened something if Nichelle tells me anything.”

“What makes you say that?” Hannah asked.

“I’m not sure,” Naomi replied. “But Nichelle seemed uncomfortable when she was talking to me. There’s got to be something else.”

Hannah put her arm around her daughter’s shoulder. “Just be careful, okay? I don’t want this to accidentally get anyone in trouble.” She kissed the top of Naomi’s head. She looked over at Tammy, who was leaning back in her chair. She shook her head with a chuckle. “Come over here T, join this lovefest.” Tammy rolled her eyes, but got up anyway, hugging them.

She saw the picture Naomi had placed on the table when she had returned from her room. "Can I see that picture?"

Naomi picked it up and handed it to her. "It's from Thanksgiving."

"We look so cute."

Tammy rolled her eyes. "I wouldn't say I look cute. But we look very cozy."

"Same difference," Naomi said.

"Eh..."

"Alright, both of you, enough," Hannah says, laughing. "Let's spend the rest of the night relaxing, not worrying about anything, and just spend quality time together."

\----------

Naomi started her day thinking, I’m going to find my necklace. Her mindset carried her through the day, all the way to the locker room before practice. She walked in, going over to her locker, not paying attention to anyone. That was until Cassandra came over and sat down in a huff. The two hadn’t spoken since yesterday, and Naomi was confused as to why her best friend ( _or is it my former best friend?_ ) was sitting right next to her, clearly upset about something.

“I think this is all my fault,” she mumbled. Naomi didn’t know what to say. Cassandra elaborated when she saw Naomi’s confused expression. “I told Anita about the necklace.”

“What?” Naomi gasped. “Why would you do that?”

“I was mad. At you, at my ankle, at everything I guess. I spilled how I was feeling to the first person that talked to me. And she asked me about the necklace. She said she was curious, how you always wore it so proudly. I actually don’t remember everything I told her. I didn’t believe she was actually going to take it. I’m really sorry.” Cassandra closed her eyes, trying her best to not cry.

Naomi took a deep breath. “I have a lot of questions. But first, why didn’t you tell me this yesterday? It would have helped.”

“I was worried to tell you because you were so upset,” Cassandra’s southern accent made it slightly hard to understand what she’s saying. “I didn’t want you to completely blow up. I know that you say that words can’t hurt you, but I knew that telling you would really hurt both of us at the time.”

Naomi paused to think. “I guess that’s valid.”

“But um, we’ll have to wait until after the end of our practices. Anita’s already downstairs.” 

“Aren’t you not practicing now because of your ankle?” Naomi wondered as they headed downstairs together.

“I’m not practicing, but the coaches want me there to help with the younger hurdlers.”

“Makes sense. Well, I’ll see you later.”

“See you. And hey,” Cassandra put her hand on the soccer player’s arm. “We’ll find it.”

“Thanks, Cassie.”

Naomi jogged over to the bench, putting her water bottle down. Nichelle walked over. “Did you figure out who took your necklace?”

“I think Anita has it. I talked to Cassandra, she doesn’t have it and she told me she said some um, stuff, about herself to Anita. The necklace came up in conversation, but Cassie never thought Anita would actually take it. Is there anything else?”

Nichelle turned around and started to walk over to the bag of soccer balls. “Sorry, I can’t tell you.” She grabbed a ball and traveled down to the far side of the field.

“What will happen if you tell me?” Naomi insisted, not giving up. “Did Anita say she’s going to do something to you if you say something?”

“How did you know?” Nichelle muttered, suddenly not looking Naomi in the eye.

“Because she’s done that to me before.”

“She has?”

“Yes, she has. She started a rumor about me and one of the boys in our Algebra class in September because I refused to do something for her. What I would have done could have gotten me in trouble, and I told her that, but she didn’t care.”

“If I tell you what’s at stake for me, will you help me if Anita finds out I told you?” Nichelle asked, passing the ball to the other girl.

Naomi thought for a second. “Yes, because technically, it is my fault and I would do whatever I can to fix this.”

“She found me texting a girl I know from where I used to live. Her name is Zuri. Zuri goes to one of our rival schools. Don’t worry, not the school that we just scrimmaged,” she paused. “Anyway, she originally said she wouldn’t tell anyone. Then I saw her and Cassandra talking about your necklace.” Naomi accidentally kicked the ball slightly too far to Nichelle’s left out of anger. Nichelle collected the ball before she continued. “After Cassandra left, I approached Anita. I said that taking your necklace was a terrible idea. Anita hadn’t noticed that I had overheard their entire conversation. She told me I was not to tell anyone. I wasn’t afraid of her, so I said, ‘Or what?’ She said that she would tell her minions, well she didn’t call them that but that’s the way she treats her friends, about me talking with Zuri. I know that couldn’t happen, I still don't have many friends and I know that would make things much worse. I’m sorry, that was a lot.”

“That’s okay. So let me get this straight, she caught you talking to your friend Zuri, and according to her, talking to your friend that goes to a different school is a problem?” Nichelle nodded. Naomi’s eyes went wide. “Wow, that’s messed up.”

“It’s always been like that here.”

Naomi looked up, shocked. “Really? It’s always been like this? I’ve lived here for the past two years and I’m finding this out now?”

Nichelle flipped her long dreadlocks to her other shoulder. “Did anyone ask you about where you lived before you moved to New Orleans?” Naomi shook her head. “This kid that moved here the year before you did, he was beaten up for coming from a different town. He had made friends quickly after coming here, but once they found out where he lived before, they turned on him. I don’t want people to turn on me, I’m already not very social, and I’m black, which is a whole other issue.”

For some reason, Naomi felt like it’s okay to open up to this girl. “I’m not social either. Cassie’s the only one that knows a lot about my past. I moved around a lot up until coming here. My mom’s job meant that at any given moment, we could be asked to pack up and move to a different place, as far as halfway across the world. Two years is the longest I’ve lived in the same place for. And that’s here, now.” She made a gesture with her hands to show she’s done talking.

“Wow,” Nichelle said. “I’d want to hear about you living all over the world someday.”

“Then I’ll tell you, just not today, not until after I get my necklace back.”

“Don’t worry, you’ll get it back. From what you’ve told me, I can tell you’re not one who gives up once they start something.”


	6. Chapter 6

“Anita!” Naomi called as she saw the runner start untying her sneakers on one of the benches. She stormed over, arms crossed against her chest. “Where is it?”

Anita looked back at her, confused. “Where’s what?”

“My necklace!” Naomi growled. “I know you have it.”

“I don’t have it. As I said, I saw Cassandra take it.” was Anita’s angry response.

“Cassandra doesn’t have it. The only other person who could have had it other than her is you.” 

Anita’s demeanor changed all of a sudden. “How do you know?”

“Because,” Naomi lowered her voice slightly. “She told me.”

“No one else?” Anita questioned slowly.

Naomi put her hands on her hips. “Nope, nobody. Why does it matter to you?”

“Because.”

“‘Because’ isn’t an answer for me. Give it back.”

“Geez, impatient are we?” Anita got up, meeting the raging girl’s eyes. “This necklace must really mean something to you.”

“Yes, it does,” Naomi said quickly. “Now, tell me, why are you so determined to pin this one on Cassandra?”

“Because!” Anita snapped. “I was hoping to get her to turn on you.”

Naomi froze. She remembered how someone her mom worked with while they were overseas a few years ago turned on her, which started a major conflict. That was the day Naomi promised herself to do everything she could to keep the people she knew and is close with from turning on her. “Why on Earth would you do that?”

“So you could suffer.”

Naomi took a step back. “Why would you want to make me suffer?”

“Because I don’t get to be happy. I’m jealous of you.”

“How are you jealous of me?”

“Your relationship with your mom. You’re lucky.” Anita sat back down, moving her backpack so Naomi can sit down as well. “My mom is in the Navy. I don’t have a great relationship with my dad, even though I live with him and my brother. My closest family is in Baton Rouge. I’ve seen your mom around town, she’s a detective or something, right? You seem like you have a really close connection.”

“How do you know all that?”

“The pictures in your locker. I wish I had that type of connection with my mom.” 

“Look, I’m sorry that you and your mom aren’t close. But that doesn’t mean to make others unhappy as well,” Anita was going to say something but Naomi continued. “I see why you did it though. And I know that I can’t really do anything to help you, but maybe try to send her a message? It’s worth a try.”

“I think I will. Thank you. And I’m really sorry I caused you so much trouble. It wasn’t the best of things. I guess if I had thought about it I would have done some things differently. And um, I think this belongs to you.” She pulled a small zipped bag out of her backpack.

Naomi’s face lit up once she saw the necklace. Anita handed it to her. “Thank you so much.”

Anita smiled. “It belongs to you. I had no right reason to take it in the first place. Anyway,” she checked the time on her phone, “I have to go. My brother’s picking me up soon. And thank you for the advice.”

“See you around!” Naomi turned around, going back to her locker. She quickly switched shoes and packed up before going back outside, dialing a number on her phone. “Hey Mom, are you almost here?”

\----------

“Tammy!” Naomi hollered out of excitement, throwing her backpack and soccer bag on the floor under the coat rack. She rushed over to the couch, jumping on the New Yorker.

Tammy grunted as Naomi bear-hugs her. “Geez, be careful,” she gestured to her laptop sitting next to her. Naomi moved it to the coffee table and sat down. “Some’s in a good mood, want to tell me what’s up? Did you get the necklace back?”

Naomi nodded her head eagerly. She pulled the necklace out of her sweatshirt. “Anita gave it back to me after practice in the locker room.”

“Hello?” Hannah called from the door. “Naomi you ran inside so fast you left your cleats in the car.”

“Sorry, Mom,” the girl replied from the living room.

“It’s okay,” Hannah said as she joined the other two. “Now, what was so important that you had to tell Tammy before me?”

“I got my necklace back,” she said excitedly.

“That’s amazing!” Her mom exclaimed, hugging her daughter. “What did Anita say?”

“She got mad. And apparently she wanted me to think Cassandra had it because it would probably make Cassie turn on me.” The two women shared a questioning look. “She wanted to see me suffer because she doesn’t get to be happy.”

“What type of person does that?” Tammy asked in disbelief.

“A jealous one,” Hannah muttered. “Did she say why?”

“She’s jealous of our dynamic,” Naomi mumbled, gesturing between herself and her mom. “Her mom’s in the Navy, and she doesn’t get to spend much time with her. She thought that it would make herself feel better if she didn’t see me happy.”

“That’s messed up.”

“I know.”

“Well,” Hannah announced, getting up. “Enough talking about that, it’s time to make dinner. Naomi, start setting the table, and Tammy, help me cook. Let’s go. We can get ice cream after dinner if it’s not too late.”

“Yes Mom,” Naomi replied with a salute.

After dinner, they went for a walk to the ice cream place a block over from their house. The air was humid, not surprising for New Orleans. Tammy and Hannah walked hand in hand while Naomi walked right in front of them. Tammy was recalling one of her many stories from her assignment in New York. “I think we should all go to New York one day, the three of us,” Hannah suggested. “We can check out everything, and you, Tammy, can be our lovely tour guide.”

Tammy’s face lit up. “Oh yes! I can take you two all over, show you the places I loved when I was growing up. We can go wherever you want, to Little Italy, on a sightseeing cruise, the Statue of Liberty, anywhere.” She continues to ramble on places that they could visit.

“I’ve always wanted to go to the Statue of Liberty,” Naomi said.

“Then we’ll definitely go there. And to the World Trade Center. The views from up there are amazing.”

Hannah’s phone went off. She pulled it out of her pocket, quickly answering it. “Khoury…yeah...we’ll be there in twenty...thanks Pride.”

“Babe, is everything okay?”

“Yeah. Pride called, we have a case. We have to go back to the office.”

“What about me?” Naomi spoke up. “What am I going to do?”

Hannah thought for a minute. “How about you come with us? You can hang out and work on homework or something.”

“I have a math packet and a book I can read.”

“Perfect. We’ll grab that stuff and our gear and then head in. Okay?”

Tammy put a hand on Hannah’s forearm. “Are you sure this is a good idea?”

“Yeah. Come on. Duty calls.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading!


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